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A collision between a white Ford F-150 pickup truck and a pedestrian occurred on 1/15/12 at
approximately 10:00 p.m. on US Highway 90 just west of the intersection of Ben Bostick Road in Gadsden
County. The pedestrian suffered fatal injuries and was declared deceased on scene. The Florida Highway
Patrol is asking for assistance in identifying the pedestrian. He is a hispanic male with black hair and
brown eyes. He is approximately 5 feet tall and 110 pounds. He has a scar on his left cheek as well as
scars on his right calf and left ankle. At the time of the crash, he was wearing a black jacket, tan pants, and
a blue sweatshirt. He is approximately 40-50 years old. Anyone with information that may aid in the
identification is asked to contact the Florida Highway Patrol at 850-410-3069.

A Blountstown man was arrested Sunday for allegedly walking around his girlfriend’s home with a submachine gun.

Raymond Keith Sowell, 38, has been charged with improper exhibition of a dangerous weapon, breach of peace and resisting arrest without violence.
According to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, Sowell and his girlfriend reportedly got into a verbal argument over the phone, then he showed up in her yard on 22nd Street late Sunday afternoon. She was over at a neighbor’s house at the time and they watched as he exited his vehicle, allegedly carrying an H & K MP5 air rifle. Although he never threatened the woman, he reportedly carried it in an aggressive manner. The neighbor told her he had a gun, so she locked the door and called authorities. Once Sowell placed the weapon back in his vehicle, the neighbor allowed him to come inside.

When law enforcement arrived, Sowell had apparently left, but was returning to the property and pulled in behind Dep. Jody Hoagland and BPD Lt. Darryl Temple. Sowell was ordered out of his truck, but quickly placed the vehicle in reverse and attempted to flee. Lt. Temple used his patrol car to blockthe truck and Sowell eventually complied. A black MP5 was found behind the seat with a large banana magazine attached to it.

Authorities on the prowl for two suspects wanted on warrants got more than they bargained for when they stumbled upon a meth lab last Tuesday at a Clarksville home.

Arrested were Angela Howard, 33, of Clarksville, Casey Ruis, 34, of Havana, Brandon Keller, 31, and Jessica Brown, 26, both of Tallahassee. All were charged with manufacture of meth, possession of meth, possession of listed chemicals and child abuse.

According to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, Sgt. Jared Nichols and Dep. John Scheetz arrived at Angela Howard’s home on Cook Road to serve arrest warrants on two subjects that were possibly at the residence. Ruis was coming out the door when they arrived, then quickly returned inside. Sgt. Nichols described hearing the sounds of people running through the mobile home and commotion coming from the west end of the residence as they walked toward the door.

Howard opened the door and Keller also approached, both appearing extremely nervous. Sgt. Nichols could see directly into the master bedroom and reported noticing a “smokey haze” in the air with a strong chemical odor consistent with meth being manufactured. A clear Pyrex dish and ceramic plate, often used when producing the drug, were also spotted on the bed. The house was cleared and the components of a meth lab were discovered. Evidence suggested the contents of a reaction vessel had been poured down a sink drain.

Howard told Sgt. Nichols they were only smoking meth, not making it. However, items used to manufacture the drug were collected, including psuedoephedrine, a listed chemical. Howard, Ruis and Keller allegedly admitted to smoking meth. Brown reportedly said crack cocaine was her drug of choice and she had smoked that just prior to the arrival of investigators.
Due to the fact Howard’s two children, ages 14 and 9, were present in the home, all were charged with child abuse. The children were turned over to a relative.

Howard is being held on a $10,000 bond. Ruis’ and Keller’s bonds are both set at $12,000. Brown’s bond is $12,500.

An arrest has been made and another is pending following an investigation into a December stabbing incident in Clarksville.

As reported last month by The County Record, Diana Jo Bates, 29, was rushed to Bay Medical Center Dec. 15 after allegedly being stabbed. According to the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office, Dep. Bobby Sims, Sgt. Jared Nichols and Inv. Mark Mallory responded to a home on NW Baggett Loop just after 6 p.m. They spoke with Bates and her boyfriend, Justin Woody, who claimed Pamela Bowden, 43, who lives with them, came home and started an altercation over a cell phone. Diana reportedly confronted Pamela in the front yard and, at one point, thought Pamela had punched her in her left side. However, she looked down and saw blood. Pamela then got in her car and left the residence.

Bates was hospitalized for treatment. She reported receiving four stitches to a one inch stab wound that was four inches deep in her side.
Meanwhile, Lt. Mark Mallory located Bowden at her mother’s home. Although visibly shaken, Bowden said she was alright. No weapons were found on her person or in her vehicle. Bowden alleged Bates attacked her with an unknown weapon while in the yard of the home they share and admitted to stabbing her, but said it was in self defense. She said she didn’t know what she had done with the knife used in the stabbing.

After arriving home from the hospital, Bates reportedly told Lt. Mallory she and Bowden had been arguing for a couple days before the stabbing incident. She said on that day, the argument escalated when Bowden was in her car and Bates was on the front porch. Bates said she went toward Bowden at the same time Bowden came toward her to fight. Bates said she had no weapon in her hand and didn’t see that Bowden was armed with a knife. Bates told Lt. Mallory she assumed she and Bowden would have a physical altercation to settle their differences, then move forward residing together because they were friends. Bates said, as she got to Bowden, she realized she had been stabbed and 911 was called.

A week later, a follow up interview was conducted with Bowden who said, on the night in question, she was sitting in her car while Bates was standing in the doorway of the house in the midst of a verbal altercation. She spotted a knife in the seat and decided to arm herself. When Bates came toward her, Bowden said she thought Bates picked up a black object. She then met Bates in the yard, alleged Bates hit her in the thumb, then she stabbed Bates. Bowden still couldn’t recall what she did with the knife.

Other witnesses were interviewed, but the knife was never recovered. Bowden said the black object she thought Bates picked up could have been a sock with a padlock inside that her friend later found, but other witnesses denied seeing Bates with anything in her hand.
Due to the fact that Bates said she intended to fight Bowden that day, and since the two women reside together, Lt. Mallory concluded the incident constituted domestic violence by both parties.

Bowden has been charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon (domestic violence) and is being held without bond. A warrant has also been issued for Bates’ arrest on charges of domestic violence assault.

An undercover drug investigation led to the arrest of a father, son, and the son’s girlfriend last week.

Albert James “A.J.” Kearce, 52, and his son, Alan “Joseph” Kearce, 23, have been charged with trafficking in hydrocodone over 28 grams, but less than 200 grams. Both men, along with Joseph’s girlfriend, Pamala A. McMillan, 50, have all been charged with conspiracy to traffic in hydrocodone.
According to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, members of the Calhoun-Liberty Drug Task Force utilized a confidential source to make a controlled purchase of 56 hydrocodone pills from A.J., Joseph and McMillan. Lt. Mark Mallory and Lt. Tim Partridge met with the source and A.J. reportedly called the source during this time and arranged to sell the pills for $5 each. A.J. allegedly indicated the pills belonged to his son, Joseph, and he had to keep four pills to prove on a urinalysis test that he was taking his prescribed medication. A.J. also told the source to bring $1.10 he needed to fill the prescription, as well as gas money.

The source met A.J. at his South Pear Street home with $10 to cover the gas and his prescription cost. They agreed to meet at the Calhoun County Library once A.J. obtained the pills. A short time later, A.J., Joseph and Pamela arrived at the library parking lot, along with another female in the vehicle. A.J. approached the source’s car and exchanged the pills for $300. During the transaction, he was asked if the others knew what was going on and said they did. The pill bottle had a prescription label with Alan J. Kearce’s name. The source called and spoke with Joseph Kearce, thanking him for selling the pills.
Once the deal was done and the suspects drove away, an arrest team consisting of Cpl. Eddie Dalton and BPD Ofc. Maxwell initiated a traffic stop and recovered the $300 in buy money.

Lt. Mallory interviewed Joseph who denied knowledge that his father was going to sell his pills. However, he was overheard on a jail phone later asking a pastor to bring him bail money and allegedly remarked that the pills were sold because they needed money.
Also interviewed was A.J. who said he wanted to accept responsibility for selling the pills and said his son had no knowledge of it. However, he admitted when asked that McMillian was with him when he first met with the source the day before in Bristol to discuss selling the pills. A.J. was also asked about his own prescription for hydrocodone. He stated he receives 90 pills per month, then trades them for sex and sells them.

Both A.J. and Joseph are being held on a $5000 bond. McMillian’s bond is set at $10,000. The other woman in the vehicle was not charged.

An investigation into inappropriate behavior with a child led to the arrest of a Blountstown man this week.

Edmond Nicholas Taylor, 34, has been charged with showing obscene material to a minor child.

According to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, the mother of a seven-year-old boy told authorities Taylor was a new neighbor who had befriended her and her children. She said her son had gone to Taylor’s home and watched television with him before, but recently began acting strange around Taylor and refused to go with him. The woman questioned her son and said he told her Taylor had touched his private parts. The child provided details to a Department of Children and Families investigator about an alleged incident with Taylor.

Lt. Mark Mallory and DCF Inv. Barbara Bodiford interviewed Taylor who indicated he had babysat the woman’s two children, but never had either of them with him alone. He said he only watched the children in his home once about a week before Christmas. Lt. Mallory asked Taylor if he knew of anything about the children that concerned him and he responded he did not.

It was then disclosed to Taylor that one of the children alleged he had touched him inappropriately. Investigators then told Taylor a medical exam was going to be conducted on the boy and, at this point, Taylor offered that the boy had spent the night with him alone about a week before Christmas and they watched movies together on a sofa bed. He said the boy confided in him during that visit that his cousins had sexually abused him.

Lt. Mallory then questioned Taylor about the discrepancies in his story, first denying he had never had the children for more than a few hours, stating he never kept either child alone, and failing to mention he had ever had the child spend the night at his home in the same bed with him. Lt. Mallory also pointed out that Taylor never mentioned the alleged child abuse involving the boy’s cousins when asked if anything concerned him about the children. Taylor admitted he never told anyone about the boy’s claims of sexual abuse by his cousins, including failing to mention it to the boy’s mother.

A search warrant was issued for Taylor’s home after the child described watching pornographic videos of boys engaged in sexual acts and referred to a mannequin Taylor kept in his home named Lola. A search of the home turned up two DVDs with gay pornography and the mannequin the boy described. The computer search history revealed someone had been searching topics such as “preteen nude boys.” The computer was seized and sent to the FDLE crime lab for further analysis.

A Blountstown man is facing meth and battery charges after a case worker from the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) paid a home visit and discovered suspicious activity.

Christopher Ryan Johnson, 28, has been charged with trafficking in methamphetamine over 28 grams and possession of drug paraphernalia, as well as battery on a DCF investigator. Also arrested was Luetta Ashley Deal, 20, charged with obstruction for allegedly screaming excessively when investigators were working the case.

According to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, Cpl. Eddie Dalton and Dep. Jody Hoagland were dispatched to a home at 16548 NE Clemmons Road where a DCF investigator was making a visit and suspected the occupants of the home were destroying a meth lab. While en route, dispatch reported hearing people in the background screaming at the DCF investigator.

Upon entering the home, Cpl. Dalton and Dep. Hoagland immediately smelled a strong chemical odor consistent with an active meth lab. DCF Inv. Barbara Bodiford, who is also a sworn law enforcement officer in Marianna, advised three plastic bottles containing clear liquids believed to be meth were on the counter when she arrived. She said Johnson grabbed them, ran past her and hit her with his shoulder, nearly causing her to fall as he fled outside the home.

Inv. Mark Mallory soon arrived with a search warrant and Major Roman Wood joined him, Hoagland and Dalton in searching the property. A warm bottle containing a bi-layer liquid believed to be meth oil was found in the yard, along with several stripped lithium batteries. Inv. Bodiford identified the bottle as one Johnson was running with when he ran outside. Also found inside the home were a marijuana bong, grinder and seeds, along with a meth pipe.

During the investigation, as DCF Inv. Bodiford was attempting to speak with a woman in the home who was the reason for her visit, Deal approached and told the woman she did not have to do anything Bodiford requested. Dep. Hoagland and Cpl. Dalton told her numerous times she did have to do what Bodiford asked as there was an ongoing investigation involving children. Later, when Johnson was being taken into custody, Deal yelled and refused to step back as Dep. Hoagland instructed. She was taken into custody on obstruction charges.

Johnson remains behind bars on a $12,000 bond. Deal is held on a $1000 bond, as well as an outstanding warrant for petit theft from Duval County.

A Calhoun County man was seriously injured in a log truck accident that left a Liberty County road closed for approximately five hours Tuesday.

Robert C. Lambeth, 58, of Blountstown was airlifted to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital in serious condition.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Lambeth was behind the wheel of a 2006 Mack semi tractor trailer hauling a load of logs just before 9 a.m. He was northbound on County Road 12 when, for unknown reasons, the truck traveled onto the east shoulder and entered the ditch. Lambeth reportedly steered hard left and the truck overturned on it's right side. The load of logs spilled onto the road and into the ditch. Lambeth was taken to a landing zone by Liberty County EMS where they were met by Air Med.

The Florida Highway Patrol was assisted on scene by the Liberty County Sheriff's Office, Liberty
County EMS, Rising Son Towing, Liberty County Road and Bridge, Liberty County Fire Department,
Williams Brothers Trucking, and McMillan Logging Company.

Blountstown’s Ryan Baker is gearing up for the game of his life. The senior at Louisiana State University has been a defensive leader for the Tigers throughout his college career. Come Monday night, all eyes will be on him and his teammates as they take on Alabama in a rematch for the BCS Championship. This time, the Bama boys will come to New Orleans for the showdown set to air on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. CT.
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The 2012 election season is starting with one candidate stepping forward.
Logan Barbee filed his letter of intent Tuesday morning to seek the Calhoun County School Superintendent post.
All county offices will be on the ballot this year.

A Clarksville woman was rushed to Bay Medical Center Thursday night after allegedly being stabbed.

According to the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office, Dep. Bobby Sims, Sgt. Jared Nichols and Inv. Mark Mallory responded to a home on NW Baggett Loop just after 6 p.m. They spoke with Diana Jo Bates and her boyfriend, Justin Woody, who claimed Pamela Bowden, who lives with them, came home and started an altercation over a cell phone. Diana reportedly confronted Pamela in the front yard and, at one point, thought Pamela had punched her in her left side. However, she looked down and saw blood. Pamela then got in her car and left the residence.

The Florida Lottery announced last week that James Earl Hunt, 62, of Altha, claimed a $1 million prize in the FLORIDA MILLIONAIRES CLUB Scratch-Off game at Florida Lottery headquarters in Tallahassee.
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